Twenty Thousand Hertz+

The stories behind the world’s most recognizable and interesting sounds.

Hosted by Sound Designer Dallas Taylor, Twenty Thousand Hertz unlocks the stories, secrets and science behind what you hear.

Whether you’re a professional audio engineer with decades of experience, a fourth grader who loves sound and music, or anyone in between, you’ll find something to love: the sound design secrets of hit movies, the forgotten backstories of classic theme songs, the sonic craft of jingles and device sounds, linguistic mysteries, psychoacoustics, video game music, animal communication, and beyond. With moving human stories, immersive sound design, and non-stop ear candy, Twenty Thousand Hertz has grown into the world’s leading podcast about sound. 

New to the show? Start here:

• I'm Lovin' It: How “Ba da ba ba ba” took over the world

• The Art of Foley: Bringing Slimer & Batman to life

• Tudum! The story behind the iconic Netflix sound

• The Legend of Zelda: A Beep to the Past

• Inside Hans Zimmer’s Remote Control Studios

• A sonic journey through the Solar System

• Mind the Gap: NYC & London’s iconic transit voices

Design
Arts
Music Commentary
101
Why Windows Got Rid of Startup Sounds
The death and rebirth of the Windows startup sound.
31 min
102
Ta-da! The history of Windows’ classic startup...
Start me up.
26 min
103
The Waterphone: Hollywood’s spookiest sound effect
The sound that haunts Hollywood.
24 min
104
Mind the Gap: NYC & London’s iconic transit vo...
Stand clear of the closing doors, please.
32 min
105
Hidden Hitmakers: The unsung heroes behind pop...
Who writes the hits for the pop stars?
33 min
106
Happy Little Episode: The soothing voice of Bob...
How a soft-spoken, poofy-haired painter changed the world, one gentle word at a time.
41 min
107
Pirate Radio: Britain’s AM rebels of the ’60s
How a group of scrappy radio pirates changed the course of music history.
33 min
108
Being Dallas Taylor: Meeting my name twins
What’s in a name?
40 min
109
Sul Sul! Behind the gibberish language of The Sims
The secrets of Simlish, the gibberish language of The Sims.
25 min
110
Guess That Sound 2021: Underunderstood
The hosts of Underunderstood go head to head in our annual Mystery Sound game.
37 min
111
The Static Angel: How HBO perfected its sonic i...
How HBO reconciled its analog past with its digital future.
25 min
112
It’s Not TV: Behind HBO’s legendary sounds
How HBO crafted two of the most iconic pieces of sonic branding in history.
23 min
113
One simple trick scientists say will stop snoring
If you live with a snorer, it can be tricky to roll out of bed after a night of little sleep.
40 min
114
Creature Speakers: The art of voicing monsters
How do you voice over 200 monsters?
26 min
115
How blind gamers are changing the world of vide...
The ins and outs of gaming without sight.
24 min
116
Sports Without Sight: The sound-driven world of...
Keep your ears on the ball.
21 min
117
Sound Cinema: Experiencing film through audio ...
Hearing is believing.
27 min
118
Sonic Bubbles: Escaping noise, but at what cost?
Self-control through sound control.
24 min
119
Domestic Symphony: Why your dryer has a theme song
What happens when dryers and dishwashers get the sound design treatment?
22 min
120
The mysterious “Windsor Hum” is finally solved!
Cracking the case of a sonic mystery.
13 min
121
The Buzzer: Are there secret spy messages on th...
Tuning in to spy radio.
31 min
122
Stay Tuned: The new voices of the Looney Tunes
The new voices of the Looney Tunes.
25 min
123
Inside the Foley Prop Room: Frozen, Jurassic Pa...
The secret tools of Foley Artists.
21 min
124
The Art of Foley: Bringing Slimer & Batman to ...
The secrets behind the subtle art of Foley.
20 min
125
Leaky Pipeline: The fight that revolutionized ...
A story within a story about pioneering women in audio.
25 min